Johun Othone

Othone was born in Addolis, the capital of the agriworld of Sermeria in 1019 BBY. Othone and his family worked at a farm a few miles away from Addolis; they produced food for the general populace of Sermeria, as well as for other, more developed planets that did not have enough land to fertilize crops for their large populations. Othone was discovered by the Jedi Order in 1009 BBY, at the age of ten, and left Sermeria with the Jedi. Othone was apprenticed to General Hoth, who took Othone to dozens of planets on missions for the Jedi. These planets generally tended to be Outer Rim worlds; Hoth preferred to stay away from the politics of the Republic, the largest interstellar government at the time. Therefore, Othone never saw worlds like the capital of the Republic, Coruscant, but instead planets much like his homeworld of Sermeria, which were generally less developed and agricultural.

During the period of time that Othone lived, a war was raging between the Jedi and their enemies, the Sith. The Jedi, alongside the Republic, fought the Sith Lord Skere Kaan, a former Jedi Master, who had formed the Brotherhood of Darkness. In response, Othone's master, Hoth, created and commanded the Army of Light, made up of Jedi. As Hoth's Padawan, Othone fought with the Army of Light on Ruusan during a series of battles that were to decide the war. Darth Bane, a Sith who wanted to destroy the Brotherhood of Darkness and reform the Sith, convinced Kaan that it was in his best interests to create a thought bomb, a weapon that targeted Force-sensitive individuals and vaporized their flesh. Hoth, realizing that Kaan was going to destroy both the Jedi and the Sith on Ruusan, evacuated thousands of Jedi in the Army of Light from Ruusan, sending Othone with Jedi Lord Valenthyne Farfalla and his warship, the Fairwind, even though Othone volunteered to stay with his master, which Hoth refused. Hoth kept a hundred Jedi with him as he confronted Kaan; all of the Jedi as well as the Sith perished when Kaan activated the bomb. The only Force-sensitives that survived were the cousins Rain and Darovit—separated at the time—as well as Bane, who had discovered Rain abandoned in an isolated area of Ruusan, after witnessing her incredible proficiency with the Force. Non-Force-sensitives, such as Sith mercenaries and Republic soldiers, survived the blast as well, since the bomb did not affect them.

Onboard the Fairwind, Othone and five hundred other Jedi were packed together; the Fairwind fit only three hundred comfortably. Othone made his way through the packed Jedi ranks and found Farfalla. Othone asked if he could join the rescue teams going down to Ruusan to look for survivors of the thought bomb, or to capture Sith mercenaries left behind by the Brotherhood of Darkness. Farfalla refused, noting that the after-effects of the thought bomb were unknown, and that Othone could be killed if he went down to Ruusan and the thought bomb's effects on Jedi still lingered. Othone argued that some members of the Brotherhood of Darkness could have survived, though Farfalla quickly denied this. Realizing that he was not going to be permitted to go down to Ruusan despite his arguments, Othone took matters into his own hands. He used a mind trick on a female soldier named Irtanna, who was set to pilot an Envoy-class shuttle, christened the Star-Wake, down to Ruusan. Othone convinced the woman that he was going along with her, and the Jedi joined Irtanna's crew, the Ruusan native Bordon and his sons Tallo and Wend, on their way down to the planet.

On his way down to Ruusan with the rest of the Army of Light's rescue crews, Othone encountered a pair of Sith mercenaries. Bordon, whose wife was lost fighting Sith mercenaries, wanted to mercilessly kill the two soldiers. Othone, seeing that Bordon was losing himself to his hatred, told Irtanna to let him leave the Star-Wake, arrest the two mercenaries, and wait for another ship to pick him and the mercenaries up. On Ruusan's surface, the thought bomb's after-effects caused no harm to Othone, proving that Jedi could once again land on the planet. Othone met the two mercenaries, who told him of a Sith who had killed two of their fellow soldiers with Force lightning, and another two with his lightsaber. Othone, intrigued by the story, thought his beliefs that a Sith Lord had survived were proven true by the story. Later, Othone was taken off Ruusan along with the two mercenaries by Major Orten Ledes, a high ranking non-Jedi in the Army of Light, who took the mercenaries into Republic custody.

Othone, upon returning to the Fairwind, was chastised by Farfalla for disobeying orders and using his Jedi powers to manipulate others. Othone discussed with Farfalla his fears that a Sith survived on Ruusan, and how the mercenaries' testimonies further proved his suspicions. Farfalla, despite Othone's fears, explained that he believed the mercenaries' stories to be lies and that Othone's own desire to take revenge on the Sith for killing Hoth was blinding him. Because Othone had blatantly disregarded direct orders from Farfalla, the Half-Bothan Jedi Master took Othone along with him to Coruscant to accompany Farfalla as his aide in a meeting with the Supreme Chancellor, Tarsus Valorum. Farfalla offered to name Othone as his Padawan, which Othone accepted.

Upon reaching Coruscant, the location of Farfalla's meeting with Valorum, Othone saw the city-wide planet for the first time in his life. During their trip towards the Chancellor's office, Othone gazed at Coruscant's city, fazed by the bright lights, the sheer amount of people, and by Coruscant's many buildings. After Farfalla and Othone arrived on the planet, the two Jedi met Valorum for their meeting. At the meeting, Valorum told Farfalla of his plans to disband the Army of Light because of the Brotherhood's demise and the damage the Jedi and Sith's wars had caused the Republic and the galaxy. Othone disagreed, and argued against the proposal, but complied when his arguments were outmatched by Valorum's politics. Valorum also proposed that the Jedi answer to the Senate of the Republic; the people of the Republic saw the Jedi as instigators of war and feared them as a result. The Supreme Chancellor would not control the Jedi—the Jedi Council would still oversee the actions of the Jedi Order, but would only do so under the supervision of the Senate. Farfalla agreed with Valorum's requests and told the Supreme Chancellor that he would bring his requests to the Jedi Council.

After the meeting ended, Othone revealed his anger to Farfalla about the discussion; he thought that everything that was being discussed spat on the memory of Hoth and the Army of Light, and that Hoth would never agree with Valorum's requests. Farfalla calmed Othone down, reminding him to watch his anger, and explained to his Padawan that Jedi needed to cast aside their weapons after the war and accept peace. Later, after the Ruusan Reformation—the proposals Valorum made to Farfalla during their meeting—passed through the Senate, Farfalla told Othone of the murders of Irtanna, Bordon, Tallo, and Wend. What was unknown to both Othone and Farfalla was that Irtanna, Bordon, Tallo, and Wend were killed by Darth Zannah, the new apprentice of Darth Bane, who had survived the blast on Ruusan. Although shocked at the news of their deaths, Othone kept his anger in check by reciting the Jedi Code. While he grieved, Farfalla told Othone that he was to be knighted as a Jedi Knight. Farfalla also explained Othone's new mission as a Jedi: to protect the Chancellor's life by serving in the Chancellor's Guard. By serving with the Guard, Othone was to show the support of the Jedi for Valorum. Farfalla knighted Othone after their discussion, since Farfalla was given permission by the Jedi Council to do so previously; the Council believed Othone had passed the Jedi Trials. After his knighting ceremony, Othone reflected upon his unhappiness with his future as Valorum's guard, but he decided to take the position willingly and serve to the best of his abilities.

In 990 BBY, ten years after the Ruusan Reformation, Valorum's changes went into effect. Hundreds of planets lost during the war had been taken back into the Republic, and Othone witnessed the changes taking place at Valorum's side. Othone remained with the Chancellor's Guard for both of his terms, as well as afterward. Valorum refused to take a security team with him on political missions after he stepped down as Chancellor, though Othone never left his side, convinced that Valorum still faced danger on these missions. Officially, Othone's position was as a Jedi Advisor, but he almost never offered Valorum advice. One of the political missions that Othone accompanied Valorum on was to the planet Serenno. Serenno's inhabitants were wealthy and often sponsored separatist movements. Valorum had to meet with the ruling families of Serenno to convince them that it was in their best interests to cut off funding to these separatists. As Othone and Valorum reached Serenno's surface, members of the Anti-Republic Liberation Front, one of the more powerful separatist groups, were waiting to kidnap the diplomat.

After Valorum's ship, the New Dawn, landed, the ARLF members attacked the Chancellor. A Chiss female, Cyndra, and a human ARLF member, Paak, detonated an explosive, destroying the New Dawn and killing its crew. However, before the four members that were waiting on the landing pad could kidnap Valorum, Othone deflected a blaster bolt headed towards him using his lightsaber. Three members came forward, attacking him with vibro-weapons lined with cortosis, a lightsaber resistant metal, though Othone used Niman, a lightsaber form, to defeat the three attackers. Othone then engaged an ARLF member who had held back, a Twi'lek named Kelad'den. Using crescent-shaped blades, Kel was able to score three cuts to Othone—the first on the right arm, the second on the face, and the third on left side—and evenly matched Othone's blade in combat. However, Othone was able to kill Kel by grabbing the Twi'lek and jumping down fifty meters into the ocean below with the intent of sacrificing himself to kill Kel. The impact killed his enemy, but Othone, using the power of the Force, survived and climbed back up. Cyndra and Paak, who had not engaged Othone, fled after they saw Kel's death. Valorum thanked Othone for saving his life and offered the Jedi help for whatever he wanted or needed.

After Othone saved Valorum's life, the two petitioned the Jedi Council and the Senate to build a memorial to remember the sacrifices Hoth and the Jedi had made on Ruusan. Valorum did this for Othone because he had saved Valorum's life, though Farfalla, Othone's former master, was unhappy with the memorial. Farfalla felt Othone was building it to elevate the status of his former master, Hoth, and by extension, Othone himself. Othone disagreed with Farfalla, explaining that the memorial on Ruusan would become a symbol of the Republic, inspiring the people who were a part of it. After his conversation with Farfalla, Othone approached the Jedi Council concerning the project. They denied Othone's request, preferring that the Jedi's deaths on Ruusan be forgotten. However, Othone had the media of the Republic at his back, who were appalled by the Council's decision, and the Senate backed Othone as well.

The proposal for the funding of the memorial passed through the Senate, and Othone began to build the memorial on Ruusan. The Jedi Knight spent considerable funds for the construction and designed it to honor the Army of Light's victory over the Sith, as well as to remind the people of the Republic of the Jedi's honor and sacrifice for the seemingly ignoble Republic. Othone decorated it with memorials and statuary for each Jedi that had died there. This produced a sense of solemness at the site, another intent of Othone. At the heart of the Valley, a building shaped as a pinnacle was designed for meditation, and at the far end of it was an Adegan crystal, which pulsated with Force-energy.

While Othone oversaw the construction of the Valley of the Jedi, as Ruusan's memorial was named, Darovit, a Force-user who had failed to become either Jedi or Sith, hindered the memorial's progress. Darovit had been living on Ruusan for ten years after his survival of the thought bomb's detonation, under the identity of the "Healing Hermit," known as such because he healed inhabitants on Ruusan. He vandalized the memorial because he felt that it was pointless; all the Jedi were doing was opening up old wounds that had been closed at the end of the New Sith Wars, and he didn't want to see another war destroy Ruusan further. After Darovit destroyed property in the Valley three times, Othone decided to stay at the construction site himself and watch for any intruders. Soon enough, Darovit came to wreak havoc upon the Valley of the Jedi again, with a Bouncer as his companion. As soon as Othone saw Darovit, the hermit burst into a sprint towards the hut he lived in, but Othone was able to keep up with Darovit, finding him at his home.

At Darovit's hut, Othone demanded to know why the man kept on vandalizing the Valley's property. Darovit explained to him that the Jedi did not deserve to come back to Ruusan, and that he figured if he kept on vandalizing the Valley of the Jedi, Othone would run out of funds and would have to cancel the project. Darovit and Othone argued about the Jedi's involvement in the New Sith Wars, and how much they were to blame for Ruusan's downfall. When Othone argued that the Jedi destroyed the Sith when Hoth forced Kaan's hand with the thought bomb, Darovit retorted by saying that the Sith still existed. Darovit told Othone how he lost his hand: he encountered a surviving Sith, Darth Bane and his new apprentice Zannah, the latter of whom was Darovit's cousin. During Darovit's confrontation with the Sith, Zannah had destroyed her cousin's hand using the dark side of the Force. Darovit had recognized Bane; he had once been a Sith and knew who Bane was. Othone, realizing that his fears of a surviving Sith were true, convinced Darovit to come with him to Coruscant to reveal to the Jedi Council the Sith's survival.

Upon reaching Coruscant, Othone left Darovit, who had wanted to research healing abilities, in the Jedi Archives, and discussed the Sith's return with Farfalla. Farfalla was still very skeptical of the Sith's existence, doubting Darovit's reliability because he was a former Sith. Farfalla recognized Bane's name when Othone described him as Zannah's master, and he was convinced by Othone to at least listen to Darovit after hearing the name. Upon being convinced, Farfalla, with Othone, went to look for Darovit in the archives, where he had been researching healing abilities performed by ancient Jedi. However, Darovit was nowhere to be found, having been kidnapped by Zannah when he discovered the Sith apprentice had infiltrated the archives looking up information on orbalisks, which had infected Bane. Darovit warned her that the Jedi were going to find Bane, who was on Tython, and kill both him and Zannah.

When Othone found that Darovit was gone, he and Farfalla went on a frantic search for him in the archives. Hoping to find the missing Darovit, the two questioned Master Qiina, a Jedi who enjoyed studying in the archives. She reprimanded the two for the disturbance they were creating in the haste of their search, but upon questioning her on the whereabouts of Darovit, whom Othone described as a man missing his hand, she told Farfalla and Othone about Darovit's conversation with Zannah. Qiina told the Jedi that Darovit and Zannah called each other "Tomcat" and "Rain", which Othone immediately recognized as their childhood nicknames. Logging on to the computer terminal Zannah had been using, Farfalla and Othone discovered that the Sith were on Tython, a Deep Core world that was known as the birthplace of the Jedi. Farfalla, realizing that the Sith still existed, told Othone to find the Jedi Masters Worror Dowmat and Raskta Lsu, who had fought with Farfalla on Ruusan. They were to accompany Farfalla and Othone to Tython, where the Jedi would end the Sith.

The assembled group, consisting of Othone, Farfalla, Worror, Lsu, and Sarro Xaj, a Jedi Knight who was the former apprentice of Lsu, boarded the Justice Crusader and set a course for Tython. Concurrently, Zannah was bringing Darovit with her to the same world, where she was going to warn Bane that the Jedi knew of the Sith's existence. The Jedi followed the Sith apprentice to Tython, and engaged Zannah and Bane in lightsaber combat in Belia Darzu's fortress. Othone, along with Xaj, engaged Zannah, while Farfalla and Lsu attacked Bane. Worror Dowmat, the final Jedi of the group, empowered the four Jedi using the rare art of battle meditation. Although Othone's Force abilities were enhanced by Dowmat, he still was outmatched by Zannah, and got in Xaj's way. Othone's mediocrity, noted by Zannah, hindered Xaj's ability to attack the Sith woman; if Xaj had been dueling Zannah by himself, he would have pushed Zannah to her limits.

Meanwhile, Farfalla and Lsu were being soundly beaten by Darth Bane. The Sith Lord was too strong for Farfalla and Lsu to score a hit, and Farfalla was forced to call for Othone's help to defeat Bane. Othone, still empowered by Dowmat's battle meditation, was able to cut Bane on his unprotected wrist with his lightsaber. This injured and enraged Bane, who threw the three Jedi backwards. With the Jedi out of his way, Bane went after Dowmat, but before the Sith could kill the unprotected Jedi, Othone Force-pushed Dowmat out of the way. However, this disabled Worror's battle meditation, which enabled Zannah to kill Lsu and Xaj. Bane then sliced Othone's hand off, beheaded Farfalla, and killed Dowmat. Othone, the last of the Jedi in the duel, was impaled by Zannah, his pleading eyes going unanswered.

Othone's lightsaber, along with Lsu's two lightsabers, Farfalla's lightsaber, and Xaj's lightsaber were originally taken as trophies by the victorious Sith Lords. Zannah was able to trick the Jedi on Ambria, who were sent to capture Darth Bane, into believing that Darovit had been the Sith Lord, and the Jedi subsequently killed him. To keep their existence a secret, the Sith were forced to leave their lightsaber trophies for the Jedi to discover. The Jedi found and took the five lightsabers to honor them at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. The fallen Jedi's lightsaber hilts were embedded into a large white stone block in the gardens around the base of the Tower of First Knowledge. Under each hilt was a depiction of its wielder, along with their name. After Othone's death, the Jedi Order named the ninth planet of the Hoth's Brand system after him.

Othone's claims of the surviving Sith never came to light, since both Darth Bane and Zannah were able to escape the Jedi. However, despite his death, the Valley of the Jedi was created to Othone's specifications. Though the Valley of the Jedi was initially popular, becoming a tourist resort for some time, the Republic eventually forgot about the Valley. Therefore, the Valley's intended role of inspiring the people of the Republic failed, as it was forgotten. It was only remembered by scholars and historians of the Jedi. The Valley of the Jedi became a powerful Force nexus, one that the Imperial Inquisitor Jerec tried to exploit in 5 ABY, but was foiled by Kyle Katarn.

As Hoth's Jedi apprentice, Othone was brash and quick to anger like Hoth. Though Farfalla was always quick to remind Othone to control his anger, Hoth usually complained that Othone was too passive. Nevertheless, after Hoth was killed by Kaan's thought bomb, Othone displayed his anger, which he wanted to take out on the Sith, on whom Othone blamed Hoth's death. Othone, in his later years, was able to control his emotions, being able to handle the deaths of the crew of the Star-Wake, but still had feelings for Hoth, for whom Othone wanted to build a memorial for. Farfalla claimed that Othone did this to elevate Hoth's status, and therefore Othone's own reputation, but Othone denied this, explaining that the memorial was to remember the sacrifices of Hoth and the Jedi that died on Ruusan. Farfalla also noted that Othone could be stubborn at times.

Othone, being a Jedi, had devoted himself to selflessness and displayed it often, such as when he attempted to sacrifice himself for Chancellor Valorum, and when he disobeyed Farfalla to help Ruusan refugees. Sometimes, Othone's selflessness blinded him to dangers around him; he ignored the potential threats of the thought bomb's aftermath, though no danger had actually existed. Another thing that clouded Othone's judgment was the potential threat of the Sith's survival on Ruusan; he ignored logical reasons that explained how the Sith couldn't have survived from his superiors. Othone's claims of the Sith's return were eventually confirmed, but it led to his death when he and the four other Jedi were killed by the Sith on Tython.

Othone was a large man: he stood at 1.85 meters, and had a black beard. He retained no features from his teen years except for the long, blond hair he had during the New Sith Wars. Othone was also a Jedi who was more loyal to the Chancellor and the Senate than the Jedi Council, evidenced by his defiance of the Council during the construction of the Valley of the Jedi. Othone also served with Valorum rather willingly, even though he was unwilling to at first; Othone stayed with the man for ten years and was willing to give up his life for Valorum.

Othone, a fully trained Jedi Knight, was quite adept with the Force; he could Force push people, and use mind tricks as well. During his Jedi career, Othone practiced Form VI: Niman, and had some talent with that lightsaber form. However, Othone could not singlehandedly beat the non-Force-sensitive Twi'lek Kelad'den and barely survived the encounter, and was unable to penetrate either Zannah or Bane's defenses. Rather, Othone's clumsiness hindered the progress of Sarro Xaj against Zannah. Othone was able to strike Darth Bane while under the influence of Worror's battle meditation, but when the Ithorian was killed, Bane and Zannah were easily able to kill Othone. One of the reasons why the Jedi Knight had difficulty in dueling the Sith was because he only practiced the very basics of lightsaber combat while serving as Valorum's aide, instead he focused on developing his diplomatic skills. For this reason, Othone was adept at political discussion and diplomatic address, influenced by Valorum while serving as his guard for ten years.

The character of Johun Othone was first mentioned in the Power of the Jedi Sourcebook; Othone was used for a backstory for the Valley of the Jedi, which explained how Othone created the monument and how he defied the Jedi Council to convince the Senate to give him funds for the monument. His next mention, in the final part of the story Kyle Katarn's Tale on Wizards.com, also explained how Othone created the Valley of the Jedi, though the story itself presented no new information. On the site, the author incorrectly spelled Othone's first name "Jothun".

Othone's first appearance in a Star Wars novel, Darth Bane: Rule of Two, written by Drew Karpyshyn, greatly expanded on Othone's character himself. The book presented information on Othone's entire life; how he created the Valley of the Jedi and his motivations for creating the monument, his apprenticeship to the Jedi vs. Sith characters Hoth and Valenthyne Farfalla, and his quest to find the Sith and destroy them, though he failed to do so in the novel. The novel also spelled Othone's first name wrong as well; he is called "John" a single time in the novel. People responded generally well to Othone's character, calling him an original character, despite his mediocrity, noted by Darth Zannah in the novel itself.

• Power of the Jedi Sourcebook
• The Official Star Wars Fact File129
• "Ask the Master" — Star Wars Insider 85
• The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
• The Essential Atlas
• The Essential Guide to Warfare
• "The Art of Warfare" — Star Wars Insider 133
• The Essential Reader's Companion
• The Official Star Wars Fact FilePart 14